From being an Abandoned who had rarely left the Hollowed Grounds, to embracing the call of adventure, to dying and being reborn first as an Ascended and then as an Ancient, Maea has gone through quite the amount of changes in her life. One thing remains common, though, in her attempts to find out just where she belongs; she’s always had a craving for knowledge which has brought her to so many places and to meet so many people here in Caido. We can’t wait to see what else is in store for her!
Congratulations, Maea!
Credits
Court of the Fallen was created in October of 2018 by Odd, Honey, and Crooked.
Skinning and hosting by the epically talented Kaons, and functionality fanciness by the coding magic of Neowulf. If you ever see either of them around, make sure to show them some love!
blessed are the curious, for they shall have adventures
"Of course it isn't too much trouble," Finn tells her, already having gathered everything together to clean up the definitely-not-water-but-let's-pretend. He's smiling quietly to himself as she offers the kind of gentle banter he'd been getting so used to in their time together, and if not for the imminent arrival of their son, it might be enough to inspire more kisses that won't get her pregnant. "I do not have a fertile tongue, if that is the implication," he remarks.
With the clean up complete, he puts everything away and moves to help Tobi get out of her leggings. Finn even has the decency to fetch her a towel and a pair of pajama bottoms to change into instead, and only once she is as comfortable as she might be does he straighten up again. "Is that better?" he asks.
when the night has been too lonely and the road has been too long
'I'm not sure what the implication was, but that's good to know either way." Tobi chuckles, watching him flit from room to room like some strange pet that had gone from feral to perfectly well-mannered in a manner of hours. Pointing her toes that he might remove her leggings and gratefully accepting the towel and change of clothes, she hums a casual melody under her breath as she looks around the living room.
The calm before the storm, only...Tobi doesn't actually think it will be a storm. Finn is clean, and in good spirits. She knows enough not to panic about the arrival of their baby the way some new mothers might, and the icing on the cake? Puns and kisses sweeter and more satisfying than any of her cravings have been thus far.
"Much." Nodding, she places a hand over her belly, smoothing out a wrinkle in her shirt. "Is there anything you need? Before all of this?"
and you think that love is only for the lucky and the strong
blessed are the curious, for they shall have adventures
"My thoughts exactly," Finn agrees with a small smile, following suit and glancing around at the living room as if it might hold the answers to what they are expected to do with themselves in the hours before a new life joins them. Because for all of his being able to metaphorically turn back the clock, Finn has not miraculously become a social casanova, and he's glad for Tobi's question to give him direction.
The no is there waiting on his tongue, but Finn stops it from spilling out to actually think. "Well," he says slowly. "Would you like me to stay, afterwards...?" The agreement had been for him to be there while he got clean. "Because I think I will need a few more changes of clothes. And I'd like to bring my guitar, if that isn't too much trouble." And some of his research, maybe. Oh, and the mug he uses for coffee. And probably the rest of his apartment, if he really thinks about it.
when the night has been too lonely and the road has been too long
Oh. Oh.
Adjusting herself slightly as if a more comfortable position might make this an easier conversation to have, Tobi nervously tightens her ponytail before forcing her hands into her lap. Her brain flits and starts as it begins creating different conversational pathways she might go down, trying to figure out what is the safest route without actually taking into account Finn’s actual question.
It dawns on her then, that just because he’s clean now, that doesn’t make the truth of what he’d told her a few weeks ago any less true: he could decide what was best for him.
“I think in this context what I would like is a bit vague.” Tobi says with a sudden smile that borders on mischievous. “Are you asking me a practical question about what I would like in terms of having a newborn? Or...” Her smile falters somewhat, and she lets it. “...or is part of your question about something else?”
and you think that love is only for the lucky and the strong
blessed are the curious, for they shall have adventures
Honestly, Finn has neither the insight nor the social capacity to have anticipated the layers that his question might have unfolded into. He had meant it on a purely practical basis - if October wanted him to still exist in the same space as her once their son arrived, he would need more than what he's got - but as she probes further it seems to dawn on him that she's looking at it through more than one lens. "Uh," he begins, helpfully.
"If it weren't for all that had happened, if we had still gotten to meet at the Celestine... I think I would still be here right now. I don't know if that answers your question, though. I'm sorry, I still struggle to understand things like this sometimes." His smile is weak but honest, at least.
when the night has been too lonely and the road has been too long
An unanticipated laugh pushes past Tobi’s lips and her brows disappear behind her thick bangs as her smile turns crooked. “Oh is that so?” She says, of Finn still being here. Whether or not it’s what he means, to Tobi’s ears, it sounds as though he’s saying things would have gone well enough for him to have moved in. Or perhaps it’s merely that, given she would have been pregnant regardless, and so he’d have stayed just the same. “Oh.” She hums, wiping away her smile. “No, you’re probably right.”
Was it Finn that was so confusing? Or this situation? Because he very much seemed like he was here purely out of pragmatism and responsibility, but then he had just kissed her, and so..
Sighing and wishing very much she could ball herself up and wrap her arms around her knees, Tobi settles for picking at some fluff on the arm of the couch. “Don’t be sorry. This isn’t easy, and ... it’s hard for me to put things into words sometimes too.” Having absolutely not an ounce of mental capacity for wallowing, Tobi sits up straighter, and reaches for Finn’s hand. “I would like you to stay. Both because it would make things easier for me, but also because I want it. I like when you’re around, and I would like you to be around if that’s okay with you.”
and you think that love is only for the lucky and the strong
blessed are the curious, for they shall have adventures
Rubbing at the back of his head, Finn is neither reassured nor made particularly uncomfortable by the strange conversation they're suddenly having, but at least October puts him out of his misery by saying it how it is. Huffing a breath of clear relief, his shoulders relax and he smiles to Tobi, holding out his hand for her to take . "I would like to stay as well," he murmurs. "Both because of the baby, and because I enjoy your company as well. Do you think there will be enough space...?"
He has realised, all of a sudden, that there is a distinct lack of baby stuff around Tobi's apartment, but he has a feeling she's probably hiding it in some clever cupboard somewhere. "And do you think I ought to give up my attic apartment? It doesn't make sense, to go all that way and back again..."
when the night has been too lonely and the road has been too long
Tobi remembers when taking Finn's hand was some grand gesture on his part. Now, it's much more natural (seeming, at least), but no less sweet. "There's a whole other room, back there." Tobi says with a nod toward the end of the hall. Past the kitchen and bathroom and the doorway to her room, are two more doors. One is a closet; Finn might not have noticed the other, or though it was a closet as well. "I think it's meant to be an office, but...I already have one of those." She says with a small laugh.
Now, much as Tobi adores Finn, and much as that adoration might easily bubble up into something more, what he says next steals her breath away and not in the manner one might expect. "Uhm." She blurts unhelpfully, sitting up straighter with a hand to her belly.
Was Finn asking to permanently live with her, while she was in labour? Gods but that sounded like him. Like them.
"I think...not just yet. There isn't time to move everything and...who knows, maybe you'll hate living with me." This latter sentiment is added with a chuckle, but Tobi's cheeks flush with a slightly worried tinge. They might hate living together. They weren't in love after all, and being bound together by a child...well...nothing was certain at this point. "Lets just take things one day at a time. Or...you know, maybe a week at a time."
and you think that love is only for the lucky and the strong
blessed are the curious, for they shall have adventures
"Oh," says Finn, following Tobi's gaze down the hall to the rooms he has barely noticed (why would he, in his state of perpetually vomiting and sweating through all of his clothes). He smiles and gives a gentle nod, glad on some level to have been proven correct. Of course Tobi would have it all in hand - she almost always does.
Ruffling a hand back through his curls, it's really does seem like a them thing, and he's neither disappointed nor hurt at her response, merely giving a gentle nod. Then how is it going to work itches on his tongue, but she answers that as well with an anxiety inducing one week at a time. "Okay," he says, instead of the thousand concerns and things that don't make sense, because that's the only thing he can do.
Giving her hand a gentle squeeze, Finn forces himself to relax against the sofa. "This is really happening." He laughs softly.
when the night has been too lonely and the road has been too long
"Good of you to notice." Tobi chuckles back, letting her eyes close for a moment. As she does, a shadow of pain creases her brows and draws lines across her forehead that her bangs hide. Her fingers splayed across her stomach tense as she pulls in a short breath. Roses of proper effort bloom on her cheeks as she tries to remember all the things she knows she's meant to do in this moment.
Breathe. Just breathe.
"...Finn, uhm.." The throbbing seems to emanate from places inside of her so deep they feel almost alien. "..I think you'd better go find Phoebe now please."
and you think that love is only for the lucky and the strong
blessed are the curious, for they shall have adventures
Finn doesn't notice, at first, that Tobi is going through something right now, not until she says his name. And when he looks up all colour seems to flood from his already fairly pale face, the Spyglass swallowing hard and scrambling to his feet. "Ah. Right, okay," he says, fluttering the words out through a soft breath and moving towards the door.
"You just... you sit tight and I'll... I will be back as soon as I can." Is it wise to leave a labouring woman alone? Probably not. But then Finn isn't exactly the wisest man going, not when it comes to things like this, and so with a brief glance over his shoulder at Tobi, he slips out of the apartment and clicks the door shut behind him. With luck, he'll find Phoebe in time.
